Earlier this week, during Sony’s State of Play event, Sucker Punch officially unveiled Ghost of Yotei, the highly anticipated sequel to the critically acclaimed Ghost of Tsushima.
Ghost of Tsushima earned widespread praise for its authentic portrayal of Japanese culture, especially the samurai tradition. The game was lauded for its meticulous attention to detail in recreating 13th-century Tsushima Island during the Mongol invasion. It beautifully captured various elements of Japanese history, folklore, and art, from the intricate design of traditional samurai armor and weaponry to the integration of Shinto shrines and the breathtaking natural landscapes of Japan.
The developers at Sucker Punch Productions took great care in crafting Ghost of Tsushima, conducting extensive research and consulting Japanese historians, unlike some studios, such as Ubisoft to ensure a respectful and immersive portrayal of samurai culture.
This dedication to authenticity resonated deeply with players and critics alike, both in Japan and abroad, who appreciated the game’s efforts to honor Japanese heritage.
Ghost of Tsushima was also a commercial success, selling over 210,000 units in its first week as a PlayStation 4 exclusive in Japan alone.
Globally, the game has sold over 13 million copies, making it one of Sony’s most successful titles. Despite issues with Sony’s reputation, such as the controversy surrounding Helldivers 2, with Sony mandating a PlayStation Network account, Ghost of Tsushima DIRECTOR’S CUT became Sony’s most popular first-party release on PC, peaking at 77,000 players on Steam, surpassing even Marvel’s Spider-Man and 2018’s God of War.
Naturally, anticipation for a sequel was sky-high, but the excitement quickly turned to dread and disappointment for some.
Rather than continuing the story of Jin Sakai, the male protagonist of the original, Ghost of Yotei takes a bold step forward by leaping centuries into the future and introducing a new heroine, Atsu, a female ronin who adopts the Ghost persona.
While Ghost of Yotei promises the same stunning visuals and immersive combat that defined its predecessor, the announcement of Atsu as the lead character has sparked considerable backlash among fans.
By now, it’s obvious that Sony has a clear agenda they’re not trying to hide. Case in point: co-CEO Hermen Hulst championed the development of Concord, a live-service hero shooter that failed so miserably upon launch that Sony pulled the plug and issued refunds to the few buyers it had after just two weeks.
Sony has positioned itself as a progressive company, but they’re notorious for enforcing globalized regulations on Asian developers. Japanese studios were required to engage with Sony Interactive Entertainment, now headquartered in California in English, further complicating relations.
Additionally, Sony has targeted games that cater to male audiences with fan service and attractive female characters, demanding censorship that has alienated Japanese developers and audiences alike. Meanwhile, Sony has embraced a more sanitized, “safe” approach, promoting wholesome LGBT-friendly games that they claim “everyone” can enjoy.
It’s no real surprise, then, that Ghost of Yotei, the sequel to the historically grounded Ghost of Tsushima, would feature a female protagonist, because, of course, female samurai were always the heroes of Nippon. Altering historical narratives to include female warriors undermines the authenticity that Ghost of Tsushima worked so hard to achieve.
Many gamers feel these changes dilute the cultural significance of the samurai ethos, reducing the complex realities of the time period to a simplified, more palatable version. In this context, featuring a female samurai warrior could be seen as a departure from the original game’s aim to honor a specific historical era and its cultural practices.
Don’t get me wrong, actual Japanese media has certainly produced female samurai characters. Hyakka Ryōran and Sengoku Collection come to mind. However, context is key. Ghost of Tsushima was widely praised for its authenticity in representing Japanese culture and samurai traditions.
Shifting to a female samurai protagonist in the sequel raises questions about historical accuracy and respect for cultural norms of that era. In other words, it can easily be seen as a “woke” addition.
This reflects a growing trend in today’s gaming landscape: moving away from traditional male protagonists in favor of more “inclusive” characters, whether they be gay, Black, female, or some combination of these traits.
Many western game development studios seem obsessed with meeting diversity and inclusivity standards, often to secure upfront investment from entities like hedge funds that back BlackRock’s political ESG agenda. These companies prioritize checking boxes over preserving the cultural or historical accuracy of their games.
It turns out the lead role in Ghost of Yōtei will be portrayed by Erika Ishii, a queer, genderfluid activist known for her outspoken disdain for law enforcement.
I don’t need to spell out how much of a red flag it is to have a queer activist taking on the lead in what was once celebrated for its authentic portrayal of Japan. Ishii’s appearance, with her progressive and butch hairstyle, doesn’t exactly fit the “attractive” aesthetic.
Sucker Punch has done an accurate job translating her unappealing figure into the game, though, ironically, with a full head of hair, her character actually looks more appealing in Ghost of Yotei than she does in real life, but that’s not saying much.
Erika Ishii is a relatively new voice actor in the video game industry, which, as we’ve previously established, is largely made up of talentless activists, especially in the West when it comes to English-speaking roles. As a genderfluid queer figure, Ishii has quickly been cast in a number of “woke” games, frequently portraying LGBT characters, such as Valkyrie in Apex Legends.
Like many in her field, her career began with small roles in various titles, but her rapid rise to prominence seems more tied to her identity, making her a convenient token for DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion) initiatives.
She has since voiced characters in titles like Final Fantasy VII Remake, The Last of Us Part II, Destiny 2, Cyberpunk 2077, Halo Infinite, Deathloop, Rune Factory 5, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare III, and even Crash Team Rumble, where she portrays Catbat, the first non-binary character in the Crash Bandicoot franchise.
Unsurprisingly, her roles align with games that are heavily focused on diversity and identity politics.
More recently, Erika Ishii landed the role of the gender-swapped Sektor in Mortal Kombat 1 and is one of the many voices for the playable character Rook in BioWare’s upcoming disaster-in-the-making, Dragon Age: The Veilguard.
Now, casting an actor in a game doesn’t always guarantee it’s going to be “woke,” but let’s be real, more often than not, it heads exactly in that direction. And when you take a look at Erika Ishii’s social media presence, those concerns only get more valid.
Her tweets are quite extreme, consistently promoting messages that advocate for LGBT rights, support Black Lives Matter, and call for the abolition of the police due to perceived white supremacy. This is particularly ironic considering that her role as a samurai in Ghost of Yotei is essentially the Japanese equivalent of a peacekeeper.
This kind of aggressive activism and rhetoric does little to inspire confidence. If Sucker Punch isn’t careful, they may find themselves caught in the crossfire of a culture war, driven by gamers who are fed up with political themes and ideologies being forced upon them.
As western developers cling to the sinking ship of ESG and enforce tokenized diversity, Ghost of Yotei risks abandoning the thorough research that made Ghost of Tsushima successful in the first place, leaving them with no one to blame but themselves.
Regardless, Sony has embraced a woke agenda, relocating the headquarters of Sony Interactive Entertainment from Japan to California. Since then, they’ve embarked on a crusade against the “wrong kind” of femininity, targeting fanservice, revealing outfits, and attractive female characters.
Meanwhile, they promote and release games that feature graphic nudity and sex scenes, but somehow, it’s deemed acceptable when the characters are butch, masculine, or lesbian.
This controversy has elicited a response from former Sony Interactive Entertainment chairman Shawn Layden, who took to Twitter to address gamers expressing their disgust over Sucker Punch’s intentions. He defended the creative direction of Ghost of Yotei with a straightforward message: “If you don’t like it, don’t buy it.”
This phrase has become a common refrain among progressives promoting their agenda to paying audiences, similar to the situation with EA and Battlefield V. Over the years, similar sentiments have been expressed in defense of movies, TV shows, and other adaptations, suggesting that these projects aren’t intended to cater to the general gaming audience or that such audiences should “go touch grass.”
Instead, gamers are often told to “get over it” as their favorite games are infused with political ideologies that undermine traditional narratives.
Ghost of Yotei marks a significant departure from what made Ghost of Tsushima so exceptional. While Ghost of Tsushima itself can be interpreted as somewhat queer-friendly, after all, players were treated to Jin’s bare bottom each time they healed at an onsen, a detail that received praise from journalists highlighting the actor’s delight in seeing his character’s nudity, this new sequel feels more like a forced gender reversal than a natural continuation of the story.
Although it may not be as overt as Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed entries, many gamers have expressed their dissatisfaction with Ghost of Yotei. They had hoped for a direct sequel instead of what they perceive as a faithless reimagining.
The sentiment surrounding the game is largely positive, largely because it’s hard to deny the success of the first installment, which relied not only on stunning visuals and engaging gameplay but also on remaining true to the historical narrative it was based on. Now, that authenticity seems compromised in the name of equality and inclusivity, especially given the actress chosen to play the pivotal role in Ghost of Yotei, a gender fluid activist.
Sucker Punch Productions operates as a subsidiary of Sony Interactive Entertainment, a company that has spent the last eight years scrutinizing and censoring Japanese developers.
This scrutiny recently extended to their own third-party release, Stellar Blade, which underwent a day-one censorship patch that reduced the game’s gore and altered character outfits.
The PlayStation brand appears to be floundering, yet many consumers remain oblivious to this reality. Recent developments, like the introduction of a $700 side-grade PlayStation 5 Pro console and co-CEO Hermen Hulst’s belief that Concord, featuring bland and ugly LGBT characters represents the “future of PlayStation,” signal deeper issues.
At this point, there seems to be no salvaging the sinking ship as even Sony’s most popular franchises must be injected with inclusivity.
